This film is a bit of a comedy...something unusual but not unprecedented for director Carl Theodor Dreyer. Usually the guy is associated with very serious religious films and films about religious hypocrisy but this time he took a break from that sort of thing to make this very dark comedy.
When the film begins, a man on a motorcycle asks the ferry attendant how long until the ferry down river leaves. He's told it's leaving in only 45 minutes...and it's 70 kilometers from there. Despite this, the motorcycle rider and his girlfriend insist that they'll make it on time. So, for a very, very long time (or so it seems) you see the motorcycle racing through the countryside. Now remember...this is a Dreyer film and Dreyer is beloved by the artsy viewers...so in addition to showing the couple on the motorcycle, you are treated to lots of extraneous shots of the front wheel, the sky and many other things. It's an art film...so deal with that. Ultimately, there IS a funny payoff...if death and irony is the sort of thing that produces belly laughs in you. As for me, it was mildly entertaining and nasty...and I mean that in a good way.
When the film begins, a man on a motorcycle asks the ferry attendant how long until the ferry down river leaves. He's told it's leaving in only 45 minutes...and it's 70 kilometers from there. Despite this, the motorcycle rider and his girlfriend insist that they'll make it on time. So, for a very, very long time (or so it seems) you see the motorcycle racing through the countryside. Now remember...this is a Dreyer film and Dreyer is beloved by the artsy viewers...so in addition to showing the couple on the motorcycle, you are treated to lots of extraneous shots of the front wheel, the sky and many other things. It's an art film...so deal with that. Ultimately, there IS a funny payoff...if death and irony is the sort of thing that produces belly laughs in you. As for me, it was mildly entertaining and nasty...and I mean that in a good way.